Components for constructional purposes

ABSTRACT

Components for constructional purposes in the form of bars or columns which form male components and female components fixable thereto for coupling with connecting components to make frames of various kinds as for tables or shelving or the like, the bar or column comprising sub-columns of polygonal or octagonal-based section spaced around and integral with a central core, each subcolumn being adapted to form a male element of a joint with one or more of the female components which are provided with an opensided bore having a corresponding polygonal or octagonal-based wall and adapted to embrace a sub-column and be secured thereto at any appropriate position therealong. Columns with sub-columns of identical section form a modular unit for cooperation with a standard form of female component which may be fitted to any one of the sub-columns and be designed for locating and fixation to a standard form of frame component by spigot and socket coupling preferably so that the frame component comes flush with the female component. The female components may be fitted by screws countersunk in channels in the female components to tighten such components on the sub-columns and be designed for connection to the frame components by self-tapping screws in open-sided bores at the sides of the channels to cause them to grip the frame components.

nited States Patent [191 Albrizzi Feb. 12, 1974 1 COMPONENTS FOR CONSTRUCTIONAL PURPOSES Alexander Rubin De eel-van Albrizzi, London, England Assignee: Albrizzi Ltd., London, England Filed2 Oct. 27, 1971 Appl. No.: 193,048

[75] Inventor:

Foreign Application Priority Data Aug. 5, 1971 Great Britain 36962/71 [56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,181,923 5/1965 Guillon et al. 287/2092 C 3,102,609 9/1963 Gerard 52/594 1,176,294 3/1916 Hill 61/60 2,880,589 4/1959 Wilson et a1. 61/60 2,962,170 11/1960 Best 211/182 3,008,741 11/1961 MacCormack 312/140 3,102,367 9/1963 Pedersen et a1. 52/594 3,528,559 9/1970 Miller 211/182 Primary Examiner-Price C. Faw, Jr.

Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Cushman, Darby & Cushman [57] ABSTRACT Components for constructional purposes in the form of bars or columns which form male components and female components fixable thereto for coupling with connecting components to make frames of various kinds as for tables or shelving or the like, the bar or column comprising sub-columns of polygonal or octagonal-based section spaced around and integral with a central core, each sub-column being adapted to form a male element of a joint with one or more of the female components which are provided with an opensided bore having a corresponding polygonal or octagonal-based wall and adapted to embrace a subcolumn and be secured thereto at any appropriate po sition therealong. Columns with sub-columns of identical section form a modular unit for cooperation with a standard form of female component which may be fitted to any one of the sub-columns and be designed for locating and fixation to a standard form of frame component by spigot and socket coupling preferably so that the frame component comes flush with the female component. The female components may be fitted by screws countersunk in channels in the female components to tighten such components on the sub-columns and be designed for connection to the frame components by self-tapping screws in open-sided bores at the sides of the channels to cause them to grip the frame components.

10 Claims, 4 Drawing Figures COMPONENTS FOR CONSTRUCTIONAL PURPOSES The present invention relates to components for constructional purposes in the form of bars or columns which form male components and members fixable thereto in the form of female components and preferably such that with the aid of connecting components, frames of various kinds can be constructed such as a frame to support a table top or shelves with the capacity for wide variations in the size and form of the table or the height and arrangement of the shelves.

The invention comprises a bar or column (hereinafter and in the claims hereof called a column component) comprising sub-columns of polygonal section spaced around and integral with a central core, each sub-column being adapted to form a male element of a joint, and one or more female co-operating components provided with an open-sided bore having a corresponding polygonal wall and adapted closely to embrace a sub-column and be secured thereto, if desired at any selected position therealong. Such components may be used with connecting components held between female components secured to sub-columns of different columns to erect a framework. The subcolumns may be of identical cross section to one another so that a standard form of female component may be fitted to any one of the sub-columns and designed for locating and fixation to a standard form of connecting component.

The female component may have its female portion at one end and a spigot at its opposite end to form a male end to receive a tubular or channel section connecting member and the spigot and the connecting component may be of rectangular or polygonal cross section so that the female components can be positioned and located against turning on a sub-column ready for fixation and a connecting member likewise positioned and located against turning on a spigot prior to fixation.

An octagonal section for the sub-column has been found very suitable where one side forms a common and integral side with that of an octagonal core so that four sub-columns are formed around the core, each of the four remaining sides of the core forming the base of a flared channel the sides of which are formed by two sides of one sub-column and opposite two an adjacent sub-column.

The wall of the bore of the female component may then be of octagonal form closely to fit and embrace a sub-column but with one or two side omitted to provide the open side of the bore.

The wall of the bore of the female component then has six or seven sides substantially conforming to the sides of the male component so that the female component when embracing the sub-column is located against turning and lateral withdrawal. If one side only of the female component is left open female components may be disposed at right angles to one another as seen looking on the end of the column but if two sides are left open the female components can be at 45 to one another. I

The female component may be secured to a subcolumn by a grub screw or screws entered from the free end of the spigot through a tapped bore or bores in the female component to thrust against a side of the subcolumn so that the female component may be caused sides of to grip the sub-column with increasing force as the screw or screws are further turned.

The spigot and the adjoining portion of the female component may be of rectangular section and the connecting members may be rectangular section tubes or channels to form flush surfaces with the female components when located by the spigots. I

The fixation of the ends of the connecting members to the spigots of the relevant female components may be by screws inserted from below in relation to the structure and advantageously by way of self-tapping screws. The free end of the spigot may be channeled vertically through its depth and preformed holes provided opening into each side of the channel so that when the self-tapping screws are driven in, the tendency is for the spigot to bite against inside wall of the tube or channel and make a secure joint. The tapped bore or bores may open into the base of the channel.

In order that the invention may be the more readily understood, reference is hereinafter made to the accompanying drawing in which I FIGS. 1 and 2 are perspective views of the modular male component column and the modular female component respectively.

FIG. 3 is a sectional plan showing two female components at right angles which may be at a corner of a frame e.g., to take a table top, an additional female component being shown set at 45 to the other two and FIG. 4 is an elevational view of FIG. 3 with one female component removed.

The column 1 has a central core 2 and four subcolumns 3 of octagonal section, one side of each octagon being common to one side of the core which may also be considered as of octagonal form merging on four sides with sides of the sub-columns to define four channels 4 the base of each of which is formed by a free side of the core and each side of the channel comprising two sides of a sub-column to provide a flared channel.

Each sub-column forms a male element of a joint with a female element 5 which has a bore 6 laterally opened at 8 the wall 9 of the bore being of octagonal form with one side of the octagon omitted to provide the open side 8.

The bore 9 is such that the female component makes a close fit with a sub-column but may be displaced therealong into a selected position. The female component is formed with a spigot 11 and two tapped bores 12 are formed in the female component so that a grub screw 13 can be screwed into the bore, from the free end of the spigot and by way of a channel 14 therein. Each grub screw is socketed at 15 to accommodate an Allen key whereby it can be driven in until its leading end engages a side 16, FIG. 3 of the appropriate subcolumn and turned hard to cause the female component tightly to grip the sub-column.

The female component is drilled with plain holes 17 each opening into a side of the channel 14. A rectangular section tubular connecting member 18 is closely fitted over the spigot to come up to a shoulder 19 defining the spigot to bring the external surface of the tube flush with the external surface of the female component. Through holes provided or drilled in the underside of the tube, self-tapping screws are screwed into the holes 17 promoting a grip of the spigot with the inside of the tube. Two grub screws 13 are provided for each female component as can be seen in FIG. 4.

Two female components 5 shown in FIG. 3 may form the corner of a rectangular frame for a table top or for a shelf for example, but a modified female component may be provided, e.g., included in a kit, where two sides of the octagonal wall of the bore are omitted so that the female component can be at 45 to the main transverse axes of the column, such a modified female component being shown in FIG. 3 and marked 5'.

The polygonal character of the sub-columns and the bore of a female component enable the female component to be located against rotation and flat ended grub screws 13 to engage a flat face of the sub column. Two sides of the bore of each female component are formed by lips 20, lips of adjacent female elements lying in parallel relation in a channel 4 and a neat and attractive structure can be erected to take a table top, e.g., of thick glass, or a shelf. In the case of the modified female component 5', FIG. 3, the lips form a first and sixth side of the basic octagon; two sides being omitted to provide the lateral opening. The top of each column may be socketed to take a plug of any appropriate material and form to act as a buffer for the table top or shelf.

The columns and the female components may be made of a light metal or alloy, e.g., aluminium, and they may be formed by extrusion and cut to size. The connecting members may be of similar material and also formed by extrusion. Only such minor operations as forming the tapped holes in the female components, and, when required, sockets for a buffer on the end of a column, are then required.

What I claim is:

1. Components for producing a modular joint comprising:

a column component;

a co-operating component;

said column component comprising a central core and multi-sided sub-columns spaced at 90 from one another around and integral with the said core, each sub-column being adapted to form a male element of a joint;

said co-operating component is a female component having a bore with a wall, said wall having sides substantially conforming to sides of the subcolumns;

at least one side of the wall of the bore is omitted to form a lateral opening extending from the bore to the exterior of the female component and to form two relatively converging lips disposed obliquely to adjacent sides of the bore to enable the female component to be slid along a sub-column closely embracing the sub-column but prevented from rotation relative thereto or lateral withdrawal therefrom; and

means for securing the female component to the subcolumn.

2. Components for producing a modular joint comprising:

a column component;

a co-operating component;

said column component comprising a longitudinally extending core of octagonal cross-section and subcolumns of octagonal cross-section like to that of each other and to the core;

said sub-columns are spaced at from each other around and are integral with the core, one side of each sub-column being common to and integral with a side of the core;

each sub-column is adapted to form a male element of a joint;

sides of the sub-columns and of the core form channels of rectangular cross-section between the subcolumns;

said co-operating component is a female component having a bore with a wall whose sides conform to sides of the sub-columns;

at least one side of the wall of the bore is omitted to form a lateral opening extending from the bore to an exterior of the female component and to form two relatively converging lips disposed obliquely to adjacent sides of the bore to enable the female component to be slid along a sub-column closely embracing the sub-column but prevented from rotation relative thereto or lateral withdrawal therefrom; and

means for securing the female component to the male element.

3. Modular joint components according to claim 2, in which only one side of the wall of the bore of the female component is omitted and the sides of said wall adjacent to the lateral opening thus formed are defined by two relatively converging oblique lips and each said channel between sub-columns of the column component is adapted to accommodate one said lip and a lip of a like female component side-by-side in parallelism.

4. Modular joint components according to claim 2, in which two adjacent sides of the wall of the bore of the female component are omitted to provide the lateral opening and the two lips so that the female component can embrace a sub-column and lie at an angle of 45 to the axes intersecting the centers of the core and the sub-columns.

5. Modular joint components according to claim 1, in which the female component is externally shouldered and has a spigot at its end remote from its bore for accommodating a connecting member, the female component having at least one tapped hole situated so that a grub screw can be screwed in from a free end of the spigot through one side of the wall of the bore to engage at right angles a side of a sub-column.

6. Modular joint components according to claim 1, in which the female component is externally shouldered and has a spigot at its end remote from its bore for accommodating a connecting member, the female component having at least one tapped hole situated so that a grub screw can be screwed in from a free end of the spigot through one side of the wall of the bore of said component to engage a side of a sub-column at right angles thereto, the free end of the spigot being channelled parallel to said bore and having a base, said tapped hole extending through the base.

7. Components for producing a modular joint comprising:

a column component;

a co-operating component;

said column component comprising a central core and multi-sided sub-column spaced at 90 from one another around and integral with the said core, each sub-column being adapted to form a male element of a joint;

a said co-operating component is a female component having a bore with a wall, said wall having sides substantially conforming to sides of the subcolumns;

at least one side of the wall of the bore is omitted to form a lateral opening extending from the bore to the exterior of the female component to enable the female component to be slid along a sub-column closely embracing the sub-column but prevented from rotation relative thereto or lateral withdrawal therefrom; and

the female component is externally shouldered and has a spigot at its end remote from its bore for accommodating a connecting member, the female component having at least one tapped hole situated so that a grub screw can be screwed in from a free end of the spigot through one side of the wall of the bore of the said component to engage a side of a sub-column, the free end of the spigot being channelled parallel to the said bore and having a base with at least one tapped bore through which a grub screw can be screwed in through one side wall of the bore of the said component to engage a side of a sub-column, and said female component having plain holes which open into each side of the channel so that when the connecting member has been engaged with the spigot and located by the shoulder self-tapping screws can be passed through holes in the connecting member into the said plain holes to secure the connecting member component in tight gripping engagement with the spigot.

8. Modular joint component according to claim 7, in which the female component is of rectangular crosssection and shouldered to form a rectangular section and comprising a connecting member in the form of a rectangular section tube proportioned to closely fit the spigot so that its external surface will come flush with the external surface of the female component when the tube is fitted over the spigot up to the shoulder.

9. Components according to claim 1 and connecting members, assembled to form a framework for supporting a table top or shelves.

10. Components according to claim 1 and connecting members assembled to form a framework supporting a table top with the column components forming legs of a table. 

1. Components for producing a modular joint comprising: a column component; a co-operating component; said column component comprising a central core and multi-sided sub-columns spaced at 90* from one another around and integral with the said core, each sub-column being adapted to form a male element of a joint; said co-operating component is a female component having a bore with a wall, said wall having sides substantially conforming to sides of the sub-columns; at least one side of the wall of the bore is omitted to form a lateral opening extending from the bore to the exterior of the female component and to form two relatively converging lips disposed obliquely to adjacent sides of the bore to enable the female component to be slid along a sub-column closely embracing the sub-column but prevented from rotation relative thereto or lateral withdrawal therefrom; and means for securing the female component to the sub-column.
 2. Components for producing a modular joint comprising: a column component; a co-operating component; said column component comprising a longitudinally extending core of octagonal cross-section and sub-columns of octagonal cross-section like to that of each other and to the core; said sub-columns are spaced at 90* from each other around and are integral with the core, one side of each sub-column being common to and integral with a side of the core; each sub-column is adapted to form a male element of a joint; sides of the sub-columns and of the core form channels of rectangular cross-section between the sub-columns; said co-operating component is a female component having a bore with a wall whose sides conform to sideS of the sub-columns; at least one side of the wall of the bore is omitted to form a lateral opening extending from the bore to an exterior of the female component and to form two relatively converging lips disposed obliquely to adjacent sides of the bore to enable the female component to be slid along a sub-column closely embracing the sub-column but prevented from rotation relative thereto or lateral withdrawal therefrom; and means for securing the female component to the male element.
 3. Modular joint components according to claim 2, in which only one side of the wall of the bore of the female component is omitted and the sides of said wall adjacent to the lateral opening thus formed are defined by two relatively converging oblique lips and each said channel between sub-columns of the column component is adapted to accommodate one said lip and a lip of a like female component side-by-side in parallelism.
 4. Modular joint components according to claim 2, in which two adjacent sides of the wall of the bore of the female component are omitted to provide the lateral opening and the two lips so that the female component can embrace a sub-column and lie at an angle of 45* to the axes intersecting the centers of the core and the sub-columns.
 5. Modular joint components according to claim 1, in which the female component is externally shouldered and has a spigot at its end remote from its bore for accommodating a connecting member, the female component having at least one tapped hole situated so that a grub screw can be screwed in from a free end of the spigot through one side of the wall of the bore to engage at right angles a side of a sub-column.
 6. Modular joint components according to claim 1, in which the female component is externally shouldered and has a spigot at its end remote from its bore for accommodating a connecting member, the female component having at least one tapped hole situated so that a grub screw can be screwed in from a free end of the spigot through one side of the wall of the bore of said component to engage a side of a sub-column at right angles thereto, the free end of the spigot being channelled parallel to said bore and having a base, said tapped hole extending through the base.
 7. Components for producing a modular joint comprising: a column component; a co-operating component; said column component comprising a central core and multi-sided sub-column spaced at 90* from one another around and integral with the said core, each sub-column being adapted to form a male element of a joint; said co-operating component is a female component having a bore with a wall, said wall having sides substantially conforming to sides of the sub-columns; at least one side of the wall of the bore is omitted to form a lateral opening extending from the bore to the exterior of the female component to enable the female component to be slid along a sub-column closely embracing the sub-column but prevented from rotation relative thereto or lateral withdrawal therefrom; and the female component is externally shouldered and has a spigot at its end remote from its bore for accommodating a connecting member, the female component having at least one tapped hole situated so that a grub screw can be screwed in from a free end of the spigot through one side of the wall of the bore of the said component to engage a side of a sub-column, the free end of the spigot being channelled parallel to the said bore and having a base with at least one tapped bore through which a grub screw can be screwed in through one side wall of the bore of the said component to engage a side of a sub-column, and said female component having plain holes which open into each side of the channel so that when the connecting member has been engaged with the spigot and located by the shoulder self-tapping screws can be passed through holes in the connecting member into the said plain holes to secure the connecting member Component in tight gripping engagement with the spigot.
 8. Modular joint component according to claim 7, in which the female component is of rectangular cross-section and shouldered to form a rectangular section and comprising a connecting member in the form of a rectangular section tube proportioned to closely fit the spigot so that its external surface will come flush with the external surface of the female component when the tube is fitted over the spigot up to the shoulder.
 9. Components according to claim 1 and connecting members, assembled to form a framework for supporting a table top or shelves.
 10. Components according to claim 1 and connecting members assembled to form a framework supporting a table top with the column components forming legs of a table. 